- 24 killed in Afghan bomb blast.
- Presidential poll in Afghanistan on September 28.
- America may be forced to prolong its troops’ stay.
New Delhi: That America could be forced to go deeper into Afghanistan, rather than leaving it, became apparent on Tuesday when at least 24 people were killed in a bomb blast near an election rally addressed by President Ashraf Ghani in central Parwan province.
The Presidential elections in the violence-scarred country, bordering Pakistan, are slated for September 28.
The Taliban, which had warned Afghans not to vote and threatened to target polling stations and election campaigns, however, did not claim responsibility for the bomb blast, apparently to ‘prove’ its innocence until it potentially captures power again in Kabul.
A blast killed 24 people and injured 31 others near an election rally held by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, a health official said in Kabul.
The President’s campaign spokesman Hamed Aziz said that Ghani was there but that he was safe and unharmed.
Recently, US President Donald Trump had abruptly called off talks to end American’s longest war last week, citing a recent Taliban attack in Kabul that killed many, including an American soldier.
Trump, who is looking at a second term as US President next year, was keen to withdraw American soldiers stationed in Afghanistan since 2001, ending the 18-year-war that has bled Washington with losses to the tune of $900 billion. The US President, who wanted to showcase his achievement in Afghanistan to woo his Republican voters again, sent his diplomats to hold nine rounds of peace talks with the Taliban but to no avail.
